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Discussion
Pay attention when you’re flying guys, and maybe have a designated copilot.
Lately Huff Daddy and I have discussed the question of radio range, and fortunately that one is straightforward. Suppliers want to sell us whatever we don’t already have, but with any decent radio system you’ll have radio control way beyond where you can see orientation and you crash.
Basic rule is don’t get it too far off to see orientation. Blew that one again yesterday with my PZ Corsair (fortunately solid foamies are so easy to fix with foam safe CA). As an old guy, I tend to loose concentration easier, and it only takes a fraction of a second. I was circling the Corsair to land and glanced at the tree line and then looked back and saw the plane had rolled almost upside down. Recovery moves didn’t work, and the basic problem was I had it too far out. I remembered that just before my mistake somebody next to me had said, “Donny, you’re getting way out there.” A typical cause of crashes is pilot error, and it’s not restricted to newbies. In our local informal electric group while hanging out today we discussed a strategy for preventing the pilot error crashing, and it’s not new. The idea we discussed is having a designated copilot, one guy who is watching your plane and everything you are doing and saying what he thinks. Typically when guys are flying together there is lots of extraneous small talk, and although most flights are only around 10min, most of us do it. But RC flying is harder than full scale (we're retired pilots), and any distraction can really make a difference. The idea is to specifically avoid small talk during a flight and have one other guy focus on the plane and exactly what the pilot is doing and advise of any risk. When the weather improves we plan to try it out. What do you guys think? Icky |
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Last edited by Ickarusmelt; Mar 19, 2010 at 01:56 AM.
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There's plenty of small talk on our flight line too, but the key is to talk without looking at the other person, isn't it?
We also usually have a couple of non-flyers on the flight line too (resting between flights) and on one occasion I had to ask one of them to be my second set of eyes when my model got so far away that I couldn't see which way was up. Between us we steered it back to the field so, yes, a second set of eyes is not a bad idea. |
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I'd say if you've got a second set of eyes out there working and spotting for you, you can significantly reduce your "cockpit load", which is great. If you fly solo 98% of the time like I do, it takes a lot of concentration to fly a steady 8 to 12 minutes. I just don't have that much energy, so I end up doing a lot of touch and goes and landings and rest 20 seconds or so. I get the biggest kick out of doing that anyway, second of course to holding my breath while I self teach myself aerobatic stuff! (!)
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Its common practice to fly with a spotter, especially at ama fields that have multiple planes in the air. Not only is it nice to have some one letting you know where your plane is they can also look for other planes and help avoid mid airs. There are some guys out at our club who never go up with out a spotter.
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In our field, the guy waiting to take off usually serves as on-spot spotter, and while we fly, most of us generally like to be concentrated on our planes, but having a co-pilot might sound as a good idea. My wife serves as the occasional co-pilot, but she is also a though judge. She keeps complaining when my maneuvers or landings are anything less than perfect
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As a newbie I try and always have my mate with me as a spotter. He has been invaluable for watching people in the vicinity. ie. a bunch of kids on approach to our position. I mean I can't watch them, so he watches them and updates me, TOTALLY essential least you find them dancing across your landing strip when you have no battery left and can't go around.
I'm waiting on wind (or lack of) for my first high glide flights, but I intend to give my spotter a monocular or binoculars and the instructions that if I lose it, he will spot it and hold his hand up with the orientation he sees the plane, I will then fly his hand. I'll let you know if this system works. Obviously using bino's at the same time as flying is somewhat impossible. |
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New pilots (and some of us older guys) tend toward tunnel vision sometimes, and it's handy to have a friend keeping an eye on potential flight hazards. I find myself concentrating so hard on the airplane that I tune out or ignore things like trees, buildings, people, etc. Then it's nice to have someone say, "TREES!!!" just before you smack the plane into one (rather than after).
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Icky, sounds like you need some DW Foamies Flite Lights:
http://www.shop.depronwest.com/produ...&categoryId=52 |
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Quote:
The danger I have found is some beginners watch the plane to see what it wants to do, ('following' the plane), and just trying to correct what it does. They don't have a pattern to fly in their heads to lead it round, (I usually suggest a figure eight), so they let it fly itself. Next thing they know it's getting smaller and smaller, (always downwind). It's tricky acting as a spotter. Trying to decide when to let the pilot correct a possible mistake themselves, and just when to give a warning. I don't like to continually say 'now do this, now do that, turn now......etc, so usually let a beginner learn as much themselves as possible. I think it gives them more confidence, knowing I'm there in an emergency, but not correcting them all the time, (which I have seen some instructors do). Once you get a few fliers in the air together, it can be pretty chaotic. Strange thing is, if you actually try to fly in formation with someone, you often end up it totally different bits of sky, but you try and stay away from another fliers plane.........confetti. |
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We really are going to try having a spotter, mainly to help the pilot avoid any major issue, like distance and obstacles. We don't expect it to always work.
A few weeks ago three of us were watching two others doing some high speed runs with their Strykers. It never occurred to any of us that they might actually meet screaming toward each other. The WHACK sounded like a loud gunshot and left nothing but a shower of little pieces. Nobody could ever do that on purpose. Icky |
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I'd rather accept the unlikely chance of me putting myself into a situation where a spotter would be helpful than to have to have a baby sitter every time I fly. I'm not a complete newbie or an invalid. If I've been stupid enough to fly far enough away that I can't see the plane that's my own damn fault and the spotter isn't going to be able to see it either.
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